The latest on California politics and government

April 1, 2014

Federal authorities returned Tuesday to Sacramento, visiting a fifth-floor office of the Legislative Office Building across N Street from the Capitol that Senate authorities said belongs to Sen. Leland Yee, the San Francisco Democrat who was arrested last week and charged with corruption and conspiracy to traffic weapons.

Two men who were part of the FBI raid at the Capitol last week were seen leaving Room 549 early Tuesday, accompanied by the Senate's Sergeant-at-Arms, Tony Beard. Beard would not comment substantively, but politely asked a reporter not to take photographs of their faces.

Mark Hedlund, a spokesman for Senate President Pro Tem Darrell Steinberg, said the office is occasionally used by a staff member of Yee's who normally works in his district office. After the arrest and the FBI raid on the Capitol last week, the Senate informed federal authorities that Yee had an additional office in the Legislative Office Building, Hedlund said.

"So they came back this morning with a warrant to check that office (because) it wasn't part of their investigation before," Hedlund said.

"They served that warrant over there and were there for a couple hours and then left."

Agents looked through the computer, desk and boxes in the office early this morning, Hedlund said.

FBI spokeswoman Gina Swankie confirmed the agency was executing a search warrant but did not say what case it pertained to.

The action comes less than a week after the latest misconduct case to grip the Capitol.

California Senators on Friday voted to suspend three of their own -- Yee, along with Sens. Ron Calderon of Montebello and Rod Wright of Baldwin Hills -- accused in separate cases of corruption and perjury.

Wright is scheduled to appear in court in May after a Los Angeles County jury convicted him of lying about his place of residence in 2008.

Last month, Calderon was indicted on two dozen counts including bribery, money laundering and tax fraud that carry a maximum sentence of 400 years in prison.

The flow of legal action has hurt morale in the Senate and cost Democrats the supermajority in both legislative houses the party worked more than a century to attain.

Editor's note: This post was updated at 10:17 a.m. to include comments from Mark Hedlund. Laurel Rosenhall of The Bee Capitol Bureau contributed to this report.

PHOTO: Senate Sgt. at Arms Tony Beard stands outside room 549 in the Legislative Office Building on Tuesday, April 1, 2014 in Sacramento.
The FBI confirmed they executed a search warrant in the room.The Sacramento Bee/Randy Pench